Hui Gui: A Chinese Story

by Elsie Sze

Hui Gui , "returning home" in Chinese, has come to designate the British handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the pivotal event that launches this moving and poignant epic novel of twentieth century China and Hong Kong. Hui Gui transports the reader through time and place with the memorable story of Tak Sing growing up in war-torn China of the thirties and forties and leaving the mainland for Hong Kong as a refugee following the Communist victory in 1949. Years later, as the clock ticks towards the handover, Tak Sing’s daughter Serena recalls her family’s stories of love and loss, courage and survival. In simple, poetic prose, Elsie Sze spins a mesmerizing tale of a homecoming and extols the triumph of the spirit over the inevitabilities of the human predicament.

290 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Elsie Sze grew up in Hong Kong, and currently lives in Toronto with her husband Michael. They have three sons, Benjamin, Samuel and Timothy. On March 28, 2009, she became a first-time grandmother when Michael (Misha) was born to Ben and his wife Inessa. A former teacher and librarian, she is an avid traveler, often to remote places which form the settings for her stories. Her first novel, Hui Gui: a Chinese story, was nominated for Foreword Magazine's Fiction Book of the Year Award, 2006. Her second novel, The Heart of the Buddha, was published in October, 2009.

Reviews

[Asmita · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've not read fiction covering this time period before. I thought it was very interesting and though it could be quite dark, there was a good balance.

[Kathleen McRae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read and quite accurate in its depiction of this time period of Chinese history